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For two hours Monday evening, Greater Lafayette voters will have a chance to test models from four companies, as Tippecanoe County election officials consider what will replace a system in use since 2006.

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A resident signs in to early voting Monday, October 29, 2018, at the Pay Less Supermarket in West Lafayette.(Photo: John Terhune/Journal & Courier)

LAFAYETTE – What sort of voting machines should Tippecanoe County go with?

For two hours Monday evening, voters will have a chance to test models from four companies, as Tippecanoe County election officials consider what will replace a system in use since 2006.

“We want to know what people like, what they prefer, after they get to try them out,” Tippecanoe County Clerk Julie Roush said. “We think we know what we like, as an Election Board. But we’re hoping this will help us make sure it’s what people want.”

That night, voting equipment from four vendors – Election Systems & Software, Hart InterCivic Inc., MicroVote General Corp. and Unisyn Voting Solutions – will be on display. People will be able to test the features of each machine, all of which will be equipped with a verifiable paper trail.

Roush said the vendors come from a list of those approved by the Indiana Secretary of State, which has a site dedicated to the particulars about each machine and each company. To see it, go to: www.in.gov/sos/elections/4532.htm.

Roush said the Tippecanoe County Election Board will not make decisions about the machines. Instead, the open house will include a survey to get feedback from those who come test the equipment.

Roush said she estimates it would cost Tippecanoe County $2 million to replace the TSx system it has been using since 2006. The aging system has no verifiable paper trail – something voting advocates in the county have been pushing for – and machines have had calibration issues in recent elections, as voters complained about touchscreens registering votes for incorrect candidates.

Election officials have said the new equipment likely wouldn’t be in place until after the November 2020 election, which Roush has predicted could have the largest number of voters in Tippecanoe County history. The Tippecanoe County Council, when pressed in December, indicated it would hold off until 2021 to set aside money for a new system.

IF YOU GO: The election equipment preview will be 5-7 p.m. Monday, March 9, on the first floor of the Tippecanoe County Office Building, 20 N. Third St. in downtown Lafayette.

Reach Dave Bangert at 765-420-5258 or at dbangert@jconline.com. Follow on Twitter: @davebangert.